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Internet has brought manifold benefits and has transformed the way the daily lives of people around the world. People have the facility to shop, conduct banking transaction, book tickets, and pay utility bills at any time from any part of the world through Internet. However, Internet has also provided a new platform for criminals to indulge in illegal activities. Threats may arise due to programming errors, security flaws in devices, computers and networks, lapses in website security management and negligence on the part of the users. Most of the threats could be avoided by simple precautions by users. While people enjoy the convenience provided by Internet, lack of security consciousness, makes them vulnerable to malware attacks, data breach, identity theft and financial losses.

Recently, Dan Nadir, senior director of consumer products at Norton, emphasized on user awareness to deal with the sophisticated attacks by cybercriminals. The security specialist emphasized that security software solutions cannot prevent an individual from disclosing personal information online. While social networking sites have provided an opportunity for Individuals to connect with family and friends online, personal information shared on online platforms may be misused by cybercriminals. Cybercriminals may extract personal information and use social engineering to trick users into fraudulent schemes. Cyber security awareness education may help Internet users to gain understanding of various threats in the cyberspace and modus operandi of the criminals.

Norton also encourages people to use strong passwords. Users are required to operate multiple online accounts for availing different types of services. People use simple and common passwords as they are easy to remember and also save time. However, the tendency among people to use weak, predictable and common passwords also makes them vulnerable to intrusions and data breaches. If user use a common password for all accounts and a cybercriminals gains access to one password related to a particular account, he may easily breach the security of other accounts. A strong password must be alphanumeric, contain special characters and must be of at least 8 characters in length. Users must use different passwords for different accounts and must also change them frequently.

Users must also verify the authenticity of a web page by checking for padlock and trust seal. However, customers must vary of simulated padlocks. When users double click on a legitimate padlock, it will be display information regarding security certification of the page. Fake websites may have simulated padlocks, which will not display any certification information. Security researchers at Norton also suggest that some browsers may color their address bar green to indicate the authenticity of a website. Security researchers also advise users against displaying their e-mail addresses on social networking sites, blogs, and comments on websites. Users may improve their knowledge on IT security through online training programs, tutorials, webinars and e-learning programs.

Cybercriminals target users through phishing and spear phishing e-mails. They also trick users to download malicious programs and malware. The malicious programs may track user activity, steal confidential information and send the extracted information to remote attackers. Adherence to security fundamentals and cyber security tips issued by regulatory authorities, security firms, banking and online shopping sites would enable users to improve computer and Internet security.